1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an information processing apparatus, and a computer-readable medium.
2. Description of Related Art
In a case where data (for example, a file which has been made) written onto a hard disk drive (HDD) which is comprised by an image forming apparatus such as a multifunction peripheral (MFP), and the like, is to be deleted, it has been required that not only the link to the data (which is the data to be deleted, or the unnecessary data) be eliminated, that is to say, the data should be invalidated, but also an overwriting/deleting be performed, in which irrelevant data (random data) is overwritten in a storage region of the HDD where the data to be deleted is stored, based on the perspective of an information security.
However, in an image forming apparatus, when image forming processing based on a print job is executed while overwriting/deleting processing of the data to be deleted (HDD data overwriting/deleting processing) is being executed, data accesses to the HDD are concentrated, thus may likely to cause a decrease of the processing speed of the image forming processing.
In order to solve the above described problem, Japanese Patent Application Laid Open Publication No. 2005-149254 discloses a technique in which a print control apparatus (image forming apparatus) is provided with a function to let a user set the execution timing of the HDD data overwriting/deleting (such as a deleting execution time and date, an access time, and the like), and the deleting range, so as to prevent the HDD data overwriting/deleting processing from overlapping the image forming processing based on a print job, thus to prevent the decrease of the processing speed.
Further, Japanese Patent Application Laid Open Publication No. 9-284572 discloses a technique of an image processing apparatus in which an input of a deleting cancel request for image data is received when copying is requested, and overwriting/deleting processing is performed for a region in which image data with no deleting cancel request is stored, while an idling time after the copy processing is terminated.
Further, Japanese Patent Application Laid Open Publication No. 2008-42805 discloses a technique of an image processing apparatus in which when the printing of image data is terminated, the management information regarding the image data which has been subjected to the printing is relocated to a deleted region, so as to invalidate (overwrite/delete) the image data while the idling time.
However, the technique disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid Open Publication No. 2005-149254 lacked the convenience for a user in that the user was required to set the execution conditions of the HDD overwriting/deleting processing to prevent the decrease of the processing speed (such as the deleting execution time, and the like). Further, in a case where the image forming processing based on a print job is executed at the same time as the set deleting execution time, there was a possibility of the processing speed of the image forming processing being decreased.
Further, according to the techniques disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid Open Publications Nos. 9-284572 and 2008-42805, the HDD data overwriting/deleting processing cannot be executed while the job is being executed in the image forming apparatus at all times. Thus, although there is a period in which the HDD is not accessed, the HDD data overwriting/deleting processing is not performed during this period, while the job is being executed. This results in inefficiency due to the unproductive waiting for the processing.